Must-See Art Guide: Paris

Bonjour, Paris. The City of Light has been in the art journalism headlines lately for its most recent, ahem, provocative public sculpture, but there’s more to see besides the controversy stirred up by the debatably erotic piece. This week is time for FIAC, the city’s biggest art fair and the most important gathering of international galleries and dealers of the year. As whenever a big art fair comes to town, there are countless exhibitions to rival what’s going on inside the booths. There’s no shortage of blockbuster museum shows that coincide with FIAC, but what about the galleries? You’ll learn more about a city from its locales, so hit the streets and see what makes Paris’ art scene unique.

You could start at Galerie kamel mennour for the work of stripy all-star Daniel Buren, whose permanent installation can always be visited in the courtyard of the Palais Royal nearby. In his latest exhibition, the artist explores Op Art-adjacent relief sculptures, resulting in dizzying, intriguing new work. Or perhaps you’re looking for some art that harkens back to an earlier era in French art, in which case you should definitely head to Galerie Patrice Trigano for a lovely show of André Derain’s intimate paintings, drawings, and even sculpture. Or if you’re more in the mood for something that feels truly of-the-moment, make sure to visit Marian Goodman Gallery for “Now,” a presentation of two of Chantal Akerman’s most striking video works.